Sen. Orrin Hatch's legacy tracks the GOP's evolution on health

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/04/28/ [login to see] /orrin-hatch-health-policy
When it comes to health policy, former Utah Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch, who died Saturday at age 88, leaves a complex legacy of major legislative achievements, changing positions, compromises and fierce opposition. In many ways, though, Hatch's evolution and leadership on health policy during his four decades in the U.S. Senate mirror that of the Republican Party.

When he came to Washington as a neophyte politician after an upset victory in 1976, Hatch was a conservative firebrand, one of the early leaders of the "New Right" bent on dismantling the federal welfare state and banning abortion. A former trial lawyer, the new senator had never before held public office.